Apple’s annual sales in India surged by 33%, according to a Bloomberg report on Monday, which cited data from India’s Registrar of Companies.
For the 12-month period ending March 31, sales reached nearly $8 billion, with iPhones accounting for almost half of this revenue. This significant increase in sales indicates the effectiveness of Apple’s strategy to shift its focus from China to other Asian markets such as India, Indonesia, and Vietnam, aiming to reduce its dependency on China.
In recent years, Apple has bolstered its presence in India on both the supply and demand sides. Since 2017, the company has been manufacturing iPhones in the country and opened its first retail store there last year. On the demand side, Apple has aimed to tap into India’s vast market, given that the country has the largest population globally. Although India’s smartphone market has been traditionally dominated by Google’s Android, iPhones constitute only 3.5% of the smartphones currently in use by consumers. Apple’s recent sales growth in India coincides with a decline in sales in China.
On the supply side, Apple has encouraged its suppliers to produce India-made batteries for its smartphones and relocate some production to India. Last year, about 14% of Apple’s iPhones were manufactured in India. The company is also increasing investments in suppliers in Vietnam and is considering starting iPhone production in Indonesia.
Apple shares hit a new high on Monday, reaching $237 at one point, pushing its market capitalization to $3.6 trillion. The company was the first to surpass a market capitalization of $3.5 trillion last week. Apple has experienced a substantial stock rally since announcing its AI strategy at the Worldwide Developer Conference in June.